2011 Contract Issues: Arizona Diamondbacks
The Diamondbacks face a pair of option decisions after the season:
- First baseman Adam LaRoche has a $7.5MM mutual option with a $1.5MM buyout. It's pretty rare to see both sides pick up a mutual option.
- Reliever Bob Howry has a $3MM club option with a $250K buyout.
Aside from LaRoche and Howry, the D'Backs' impending free agents are Brandon Webb, Chad Qualls, Aaron Heilman, and Rodrigo Lopez. The group is earning about $15.5MM in 2010. The Diamondbacks are also paying Eric Byrnes $10.6MM this year.
The D'Backs must prepare for a sizeable increase to players under contract – just under $20MM total. Dan Haren, Edwin Jackson, Mark Reynolds, and Justin Upton all get bumps in the $4MM range.
More increases will come from arbitration-eligible players. Stephen Drew, Miguel Montero, and Blaine Boyer are second-year guys, with Conor Jackson and Kelly Johnson entering their third year. Augie Ojeda could be a fourth-year player.
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the information.
Fred Lewis Decision Coming Soon
8:16pm: Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter) predicts that Lewis will still be with the Giants this weekend. Schulman is hearing that there is little or no trade interest in the market for the outfielder.
8:24am: Giants outfielder Fred Lewis will be activated or traded by the weekend, reports Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News. Lewis is in Triple A rehabbing a sore rib cage, but his assignment won't last past Thursday. Lewis is out of options, so the Giants can't keep him in the minors.
Baggarly notes that the Giants' roster is stocked with six outfielders, implying that a trade is more likely than a call-up. He says that while the Padres and Athletics have expressed past interest in Lewis, the Blue Jays may be "the most likely destination." New GM Alex Anthopoulos is familiar with the Giants, already having claimed Brian Bocock and traded for Merkin Valdez in his six months on the job. Bocock was claimed again by the Phillies.
Lewis, 29, has a .277/.355/.420 career line, with a walk rate over 10%. He's played all three outfield positions in the Majors, but mostly left field. Three years ago Baseball America called him "the best all-around athlete in the system," a player with star-level raw skills. BA questioned his outfield routes, though Lewis' left field defense comes out strong in terms of UZR/150. Baggarly noted that Lewis has been getting some recent starts in center, so perhaps that's not a lost cause. Obviously Lewis' bat plays better there if he can hold his own defensively.
GM Initiation: Jon Daniels
Jon Daniels was announced as the new general manager of the Rangers on October 4th, 2005. At 28, he was the youngest GM in Major League history.
In mid-November of '05, Daniels struck his first deal. He and Cubs GM Jim Hendry agreed on a trade that would send righty Jon Leicester to Texas for a player to be named later. Minor league pitcher Clint Brannon was sent to the Cubs as the PTBNL in March. Daniels was kind enough to answer a few questions about his first trade.
MLB Trade Rumors: How long did you have your eye on Leicester before making the deal? He was coming off a rough year in Iowa; what did you see in him? As one of the Cubs' better prospects heading prior to the '05 season, were you surprised they'd part with him for a player to be named later or cash?
Jon Daniels: He was an out of options reliever – a guy we'd had good reports on in the past, had recently gotten over an injury I believe. We looked at him as a nice buy low opportunity, with a chance to pay dividends if it clicked. The Cubs didn’t have a spot for him – some clubs hold their out of options guys as long as possible – others recognize he's not part of their plans and move quicker, that's what happened here.
MLBTR: The Cubs ended up getting Brannon in March to complete the deal, but got only 7.3 A ball innings out of him. Did any of the other choices on the Cubs' list of possibilities end up playing in the Majors?
Daniels: I don't think there were other names, actually. Brannon was the only guy we discussed. He'd had some low level success the year before – might have actually set the Northwest League ERA record if I recall – but didn't do well in Chicago. That's OK – Leicester hurt himself in some odd off-field deal and didn't really pan out here – no one made out in this one.
MLBTR: Does the Leicester trade hold significance for you as your first deal, or was it overshadowed by the bigger trades that soon followed?
Daniels: Not a lot of significance other than the fact I get to say I traded for Jon "Lester" before people realize it’s the one spelled "Leicester."
MLBTR: What kind of relationship did you have with Jim Hendry prior to the Leicester trade?
Daniels: I knew Jim some from his dealings with John Hart when I worked for John. We'd spent some time together at GM and Winter Meetings before, but we didn't have a lot of history together. We've worked together a couple of times since.
MLBTR: At just 28 years old, what kind of reception did you get from other GMs after you got the job?
Daniels: Respectful and positive for the most part. My age was a novelty for the first while, but more with media and fans than with counterparts around the league, at least outwardly.
Nationals Plan To Draft Bryce Harper?
3:11pm: Asked about drafting Harper, Nationals Director of Amateur Scouting Kris Kline told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post, "I don't think that's etched in stone." The Nationals are down to a list of five candidates, with GM Mike Rizzo scheduled to see Harper in person for the first time in May.
7:56am: The Nationals plan to draft Bryce Harper first overall in June "barring an injury or drastic change," writes MASN's Ben Goessling. However, MLB.com's Bill Ladson tweets his disagreement. The 17-year-old phenom, currently raking junior college pitching and playing catcher, is considered by the Nats to be "as surefire a talent as Jason Heyward" according to Goessling. Scott Boras is "advising" Harper, ensuring Harper's massive bonus will be fiercely negotiated.
Harper isn't viewed on the same level as Justin Upton or Alex Rodriguez, but there still aren't many players approaching his talent or ceiling in the upcoming draft. ESPN's Keith Law, MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo, and Baseball America's Aaron Fitt have scouting reports.
Rays Announce Leslie Anderson Signing
It's Cuban defector day here at MLBTR, as the Rays officially announced their signing of Leslie Anderson an hour after the Blue Jays made their Adeiny Hechavarria announcement. Anderson's four-year, $3.75MM agreement was first reported on March 11th.
The press release notes Anderson's athleticism and ability to play all three outfield positions and first base. When Anderson defected in September, his agent Jaime Torres drew a comparison to Alexei Ramirez.
Willingham Hopes For Multiyear Deal
Josh Willingham hopes to sign a multiyear deal with the Nationals, agent Matt Sosnick told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post (Twitter link). Sosnick and the Nats agreed on a $4.6MM salary for 2010 back in January; this marks the second of three arbitration years for Willingham. He's under team control through the 2011 season.
Willingham, 31, has a career line of .266/.364/.481 in 2,181 plate appearances. He's been consistent, as he's had a similar line in each of his four full seasons. UZR suggests his left field defense has been slightly below-average. FanGraphs' Dave Cameron made a case that Willingham is a very similar player to Jason Bay, aside from their health records.
Will the Nationals commit to Willingham? Back in January GM Mike Rizzo admitted he had been close on a couple of deals, presumably for young starters, but added, "we're in no hurry to trade Willingham."
Blue Jays Announce Hechavarria Signing
The Blue Jays announced today that they've signed Cuban shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria to a four-year, $10MM contract. The official tweet came nearly a full month since news of the agreement broke. The Blue Jays were heavily involved in Cuban free agents this winter, as they were also in the mix for Aroldis Chapman, Leslie Anderson, and Jose Julio Ruiz. The Angels, Cubs, and Yankees were competitors for Hechavarria.
Hechavarria will receive a $4MM signing bonus, $500K in 2010, $2MM in 2011, and $1.75MM in 2012, according to Jordan Bastian of MLB.com (via Twitter).
ESPN's Mark Saxon introduced us to the 19-year-old Hechavarria back in February. Cuban Ball Players provided video. Jorge Ebro at the Nuevo Herald gave more details a few weeks ago. Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos has brought in a nice haul of young talent in his six months on the job; check out our offseason in review piece for more details.
Dye Hopes For Interest From Mariners
Free agent outfielder Jermaine Dye has the Mariners on the list of teams he'd consider, reports ESPN's Mike Salk. Unfortunately, the interest has not been mutual. Dye's agent Bob Bry had this to say:
"Seattle is a team he focused on this off-season. He was disappointed that there was not more interest from the club."
Salk says Dye would be willing to take less than a full-time role with the Mariners, and guesses that he'd sign for $3-4MM. Dye turned down a $3MM offer from the Cubs a few months ago and recently rejected an unknown offer from the Nationals. He also had talks with the Brewers in late March. Dye suggested to MLB.com's Bill Ladson that many of his offers were in the $1MM range, which he seemed to find insulting.
Rather than sign Dye, the Mariners brought in Milton Bradley, Eric Byrnes, Casey Kotchman, Ken Griffey Jr., and Mike Sweeney for offensive spots. I wasn't a fan of the approach, but the Ms figure to give the group more than eight games before turning to someone like Dye.
2011 Contract Issues: Chicago Cubs
The Cubs have one option situation due after the season, and it's a crucial one. Third baseman Aramis Ramirez faces a $14.6MM player option, which he'll think about after the season. Ramirez also has a $16MM mutual option for 2012, which can vest if Ramirez wins the LCS or regular MVP award this year or next or makes the All-Star team both years. Though he might not be able to get a $15MM salary on the open market, he could find more than one guaranteed year. I expect history to repeat itself – Ramirez will opt out but eventually agree to an extension to stay with the Cubs.
The Cubs also have a pair of important free agents: Derrek Lee and Ted Lilly. Both players want to stay, but it sounds like discussions will occur after the season. The question might be more on the Cubs' side - GM Jim Hendry has a history of retaining his own free agents if he wants them back. New Cubs Xavier Nady and Chad Tracy signed one-year deals, so they'll be eligible as well. Ramirez, Lee, and Lilly will earn about $41MM in 2010.
Increases to players under contract will total $6.1MM for 2011, topped by Marlon Byrd's $2.5MM bump. On the flip side, the Cubs will pay Carlos Silva $6MM in 2011 as opposed to the $12MM they would've paid Milton Bradley. Geovany Soto will get a raise as a first-year arbitration player, while the Cubs' second-year group includes Ryan Theriot, Carlos Marmol, Mike Fontenot, Jeff Baker, Sean Marshall, Angel Guzman, Tom Gorzelanny, and Koyie Hill.
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.
GM Initiation: Josh Byrnes
We're kicking off a new series here at MLBTR called GM Initiation. Each post in the series will look at a general manager's first trade.
Josh Byrnes was hired as Diamondbacks GM on October 28th, 2005. His first deal came on December 7th at the Winter Meetings. Byrnes and Braves GM John Schuerholz agreed on a deal to send catcher Johnny Estrada to Arizona for relievers Oscar Villarreal and Lance Cormier. Estrada went on to have a solid '06 campaign for the D'Backs and was used in a trade to acquire Doug Davis after the season. Both relievers pitched two seasons for Atlanta, with Villarreal posting better numbers.
Byrnes was kind enough to answer a few questions about his first trade.
MLB Trade Rumors: 2005 marked your first Winter Meetings as a general manager. How would you describe the experience?
Josh Byrnes: The 2005 Winter Meetings were busy. We were exploring many trades to reshape the roster. It was our first time together as a larger group in that type of setting.
MLBTR: Did you enter the '05 Meetings intent on acquiring a starting catcher? About how many different catchers were you seriously considering?
Byrnes: We were trying to improve in the middle of the field. Later that month, we acquired Orlando Hudson, Eric Byrnes and Chris Young. Estrada was the catcher who made the most sense at the time.
MLBTR: What kind of relationship did you have with Braves GM John Schuerholz prior to the Estrada deal? How long did it take to put the trade together?
Byrnes: I knew John a little bit. The trade came together fairly quickly. We had a few discussions at the meetings and agreed after a few conversations.
MLBTR: Does the Estrada trade hold significance for you, since it was your first acquisition? Is the significance diminished because you were such an active trader that month?
Byrnes: I said at the time that the deal carried some significance to me because we did it with John. Certainly, he is one the best (if not the best) GM’s of all time. He is also very passionate about the game and the industry, so it is memorable to have made my first trade with John.